Chapter 198.2 - Desire

"What did you say?"

The crimson bled into her vision, slow at first, then all at once.

Like ink seeping through paper, the colors of the Elemental Chamber dulled, swallowed by an overwhelming shade of red. The pulsing mana that once hummed softly around her now roared like a storm in her ears, thick and suffocating.

Maya staggered.

Her breath hitched, her hands flying to her temples as the air around her turned heavy—dense, oppressive, crushing. Her body knew this feeling. The creeping, smoldering hunger curling at the edges of her mind. The sharp, almost intoxicating pulse that accompanied it.

Her other self was furious.

"You don't understand?" the voice whispered, low and venomous, curling around her like a viper. "You think I don't understand?"